


Five To One, Baby. One In Five...

by Aramirandme81



Category: Being Human (UK), The Almighty Johnsons
Genre: Brotherly Affection, Dysfunctional Family, F/M, Family Feels, Friendship, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, M/M, Mentions of Violence, Multi, sexual magic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-31
Updated: 2013-08-03
Packaged: 2017-12-22 00:22:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 8,547
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/906704
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aramirandme81/pseuds/Aramirandme81
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>My attempt to answer this challenge http://almighty-kink.livejournal.com/820.html?thread=242996#t242996<br/>Anders is underappriciated by his Family, but he still loves them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Money Makes The World Go Round…

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first attempt at a '5 and 1' fic. As well as my first foray into The Almighty Johnsons.  
> The promt was: Okay so we've all seen how Anders cares for his family (but just doesn't show it that well) aka the last part of the latest episode. (And he is kinda underappreicated) so basically I want a fic where Anders does things for his family without them noticing?
> 
>    
> Also I'm not too sure of the 'guys' ages but I'm going with Mike being ca. 13 years older than Axl. If anyone know their Tv ages plz let me know.  
> cheers!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Wonders of modern technology

 

The wonders of modern technology are only wonderful if you know how to use them to your own advantage. 

For instance: Mr Black has just had the sad misfortune of having his computer system go on the fits and make his thermostats go haywire on him.  
How much can that be a bother you ask?  
Well since he own an Ice-skating ring, quite a lot really.  
Especially if the local big hope has tripped on the semi frozen ring and her parents are threatening to sue the poor sap for every last drop of blood. 

Not a typical job for J:pr, there’s simply no money to be earned here. But Anders is one of the ones that know how to ‘use’ technology, ok so it’s called hacking but you know semantics… anyway that’s how he knows how his brothers finances are at the moment.

Mike, the noble idiot, spending more than he’s really got trying to give Axl the best possible chances and upbringing.

Ty, newly started business not yet taking off and earning back what was spend on starting it.

Axl, only just begun as a student so he’s as brook as they come.

 

Knowing this Anders approaches Mr. Black with the offer that he’ll handle the press for him, and mediate in the dispute with little Daisy Winter’s parents. J:pr’s price? Why Anders is just such a fan of ice-skateing it really would be a shame if the only good family run place was put out of business. Speaking of which, he really should go local with the repair work, have he hear about this new firm? It’s the best around and very reasonable with their prices. 

Oh, and he’ll need those old benches and stairs redone. 

Why? For the grand reopening of course! 

Little Daisy Winter will have to have a show with her entire ice-dancing class to celebrate the fact that she’s back in the ring, and with a nice new sponsorship to booth. (One of his other client’s just happens to be a sporting goods company, who jumped at his suggestion that the little darling would be good for branding.)  
So really he should get those done. Don’t know any carpenter or builder that works that fast for what you have? Well it’s not really what a pr company normally do but… yes Anders is sure he can call in some favours and have a name for Mr. Black within a day or two. 

No, no. No need to thank him, it’s for the good of the community and the sport. 

 

And if all Mr Black says when he hires the Johnson brothers is: “You come highly recommended.” Before he’s off to plan the reopening with the ice-dance coach, and neither Mike nor Ty thinks to ask ‘who’ recommended them, and Axl is just as oblivious as always? Well you don’t look a gift job in the mouth do you?


	2. Heartache By The Number, Trouble By The Score…

 

Mike is thirteen and he’s hopelessly in love with Annie Miller.

Right now he has her up in his room and there is an awful lot of giggling to be heard through the locked door. 

Personally Anders things it’s yucky to want to kiss anyone like that, let alone girls, but Mike sure seems to like it.

To be fair, Mike thinks he’s alone for the weekend, so he can invite anyone he wants. Even a girl who always coos at Anders and pet’s his curly hair like he’s some sort of fluffy dog whenever their paths cross and he can’t escape fast enough. 

Only now Mike is not alone, because Anders has been send home from the Petersons where he was supposed to spend the week, when the youngest had come down with something, and now he’s sitting half way up the stairs trying to work up the courage to go knock on Mikes door and tell him: ‘he’s home and kind of hungry because he hasn’t gotten anything since breakfast and he’s not allowed to use the stove alone and he’s too shot to reach the shelve that the bread is kept on, and there are no fruit in the bowl, not even apples (Anders Really likes apples). And could Mike please feed him?’ Yes that would go over well… not.

 

Anders sighs, and is just about resigned to having to sneak to bed without food, hardly a novel experience in the Johnson household, when he hears the kitchen door being opened.  
Mum’s in Wellington visiting some cousin or other and she’s taken Axl and Ty with her, because Axl is a baby and she loves Ty. Cousin Olaf is the only other person Anders knows that doesn’t knock but he rarely uses the kitchen door and anyone else knock or call out before entering, which leaves… 

“Dad.” Anders whisper and sends a frantic look at the door to Mikes room. The giggles are heard again, so Mike haven’t hear the door. They are strictly forbidden from bringing anyone into the house without asking permission first, and Anders have heard dad promise Mike that he would be ‘discussing’ it with Mike if he ever brought a girl home. 

Anders supresses a shiver at the thought of one of dads ‘discussions’. While their dad had only ever slapped Mike once or twice, Anders has been at the receiving end of a ‘discussion’ more often than he cares to remember, with the hospital visits to prove it. But doctor Maggie only told Anders that he shouldn’t be so clumsy all the time as she treated him, and smiled at dad. 

Mike might like to act all grownup and too important to talk to Anders anymore, but there is no way Anders will let Mike take a beating from their farther. From the angry muttering coming from the kitchen, dad’s in a foul mood already so it won’t take much to set him off. 

Weighing his options Anders quickly unlaces one of his shoes and proceed to deliberately trip down the stairs with as much noise as he can manage.

 

Dad yells at him for being an idiot, for wearing his shoes in the house, for being home, for bleeding on the floor and for making him having to go to the hospital again. 

When Anders gets home with his arm in plaster and Mike is pissed at him because dad has shot through again after dropping Anders of and left Mike to look after Anders for the rest of the week, Anders can still smile with the thought that Mike is safe and unharmed and for ‘once’ the bruises, bumps and broken bones Anders sports really ARE from falling down the stairs.


	3. Somewhere Beyond The Sea…

 

It’s rare that the Johnsons have a good time when they are all together, but once or twice when they go into town to celebrate someone’s birthday or the likes it will happen that good times are to be had by all. 

This, this is not one of those times.

 

Mum and dad are having a ‘hiss out’ turning ‘shout match’ in the street.

“You selfish, inconsiderate..”

“ME?! I’m not the one who..”

“Oh so it’s MY fault that you can’t..”

And on and on they go.

 

Mike had left the minute they had hit town to find the friends he was meant to meet, so he wasn’t there to help defuse the situation.

Ty has begun sniffing and little Axl’s eyes are turning as big as tea cups and his bottom lip is trembling dangerously. 

Anders lookes around franticly for inspiration, and notices a new pet store had opened a little down the street. 

“Hey Ty, Axl would you like to go look at the animals? You like animals right Axl?” Anders coaxes, already turning his younger brothers away from their bickering parents and towards the window filled with living things.

Ty sighs.

“But we were supposed to find your birthday present Anders, you don’t like pets after Carmelita died.”

Anders has to blink a few times at that. He’d fucking loved that guinea pig, she’d been a soft little bundle of happily squeaking fur that had loved to snuggle up to Anders as he lay on the floor doing his homework. He’d come home after a four day school trip to find her weak and ill, only to have his farther hit her over the head to ‘put her out of her misery’, prompting Anders to burst into inconsolable tears until Mike had promised that he’d give her a proper burial and not just throw her out with the trash like their ever practical mother had said to do. Even if Mike had grumbled all that way through the proses, it had made Anders feel like someone beside him had cared. 

Swallowing down a lump of re-surfaced emotion Anders guides his brother to a stop as they reach the storefront.

“Yes well, there’s no harm in looking. Oh se Axl fishes!” Anders imbues his words with all the enthusiasm he can.

“Fishies?” Axl cautiously asks, not sure why he should be so happy as Anders is indicating but feeling that something good is about to happen.

“Fish?” Ty ask as well, clearly unwilling to play into Anders little game of ‘let’s pretend the shouting grown-ups are NOT related to us in any way’ but couldn’t quite help being drawn in by Anders enthusiasm.

Anders give a vigorous nod, and upped the joy factor in his voice even more. 

“Yes fish. See the how the colours change as the lights hit them? Do you know why they do that Axl?”

Axl’s lip has stopped trembling, if only because he has nearly his entire fist in his mouth. 

“Why Andy?” Big curious eyes gazes up at his big brother as if he held all the answers in the world.

“Well you see….”

 

Nearly an hour later and Anders has an audience of several children, a few teenagers and one or two adults as he tells tales about every little fish in the aquarium as Axl, Ty and one or two of the more outgoing of his listeners askes about them.

Their dad comes up to them as he is just finishing a tale about a neon-fish that didn’t want to go to school and so had to swim all alone.

“That’s enough son, we have to go home now it’s getting late.”

Anders blinks as if remembering where he is and seem to shrink into himself as his dad places a hand on his shoulder.

“Yes, sir. Come on Axl, you can hold my hand if you like.”

“But..fishies?!?” Axl is reluctant to leave the wonderful world his brother has shown him.

Ty give a gasp of realization.

“Anders, we forgot to get your birthday present!”

“Oh.”

“Fishies!!” Axel wail, and pulls at Anders hands with all the strength of an angry toddler.

Seeing the frown begin to appear on his dad’s face again Anders reactes quickly.

“Yes Axl, that’s a great idea. Dad I would like to have some fish for my birthday.”

 

And if Anders has trouble sleeping for weeks because of the lights and sounds of the little fish tank, the fact that he now has the easy excuses of needing help cleaning the tank, feeding the fish or that the fish has a new story to tell, to give for getting either or both of his younger brothers into his room whenever he fels a parental storm front brewing is more than enough payment for the lost toy he has really been wishing for this year. Even if Mike’s mumbled: “I’m not digging a grave for fish, no matter how tragically they die” when he finds out what Anders has gotten, will hurt a little.


	4. Leaving On A Jet Plane

 

Anders knows that he and Gaia are breaking his little brother’s heart, as they break their own each time they give in to Bragi and Idunn.

“If you ask it of me, I will leave the city and never return. But you have to ask it or I won’t have the strength to fight Bragi’s wishes and do so.” Anders says as he sits on the edge of his bed.

Gaia sighs as she fiddles with the hem of her dress.

“I don’t want you to leave. Or rather Idunn don’t want you to leave, and I won’t ask you to leave you family and work behind.”

“I own the company, I could start over somewhere else.”

“No Anders, that wouldn’t be fair to you. Your family needs you.”

Anders snorts.

“You mean they need Bragi.”

“It’s the same thing.”

“It’s really not. You of all people should know that Gaia.”

Gaia sighs again and let’s herself fall back onto Anders bed.

“I know. And I’m sorry that they hate you now because of this.” 

Anders shoulder shakes with ill supressed tremors, and for a moment Gaia thinks he’s crying.

“Anders…” She feels a dual need to comfort him, Idunn want’s her husband and Gaia never did like se anyone sad, even a dick like Anders.

Anders turn towards her and to her shock she sees that he’s laughing.

“Oh sweet Gaia, while this whole fucked up mess has hardly endeared me to my self-righteous family, it was hardly what made them hate me in the first place. But that’s not getting us anywhere. If you won’t let me leave, I can help you find somewhere else.”

Gaia sits up so they are more on level.

“You want me to move out of the house?”

Anders shakes his head.

“You want me to leave the city? To go back to the island?”

“Will the island be far enough for you to forget about me, about Bragi and Axl and all the god shit?”

“No… no you are right it won’t. But Anders I can’t just… where will I go?”

“If you could go anywhere in the world, do anything you wished for a living what and where would it be?”

“I don’t know, I always wanted to go to New York or Paris, maybe London? As for work I’m actually quite happy being a nurse.”

Anders ‘hmms’ takes out his phone and starts flipping through his contacts.

“Give me a minute or two.” He says and goes into the bathroom.

 

A minute or two turns into nearly an hour. And when Anders emerges again he looks drained and sad jet relived.

“Sorry, had to do a little catch-up first, but if you could mail me a copy of your credentials it’s all set now.”

“What is?”

“Your new job in the UK.”

“What?!?”

“You’ll have to start out in Bristol for a while I’m afraid, but if you are in anyway as good a nurse as Axl’s let us all to believe we can have you transferred to a private hospital just outside London within a few months. I’d have had you there from the start but the director won’t hire anyone that’s not worked in NHS for at least some time. That’s not a problem is it?”

Gaia did a really good imitation of Anders’s fish.

“But, but I… I still can’t afford the ticket there.” She at least managed to stammer out.

“I’ll take care of that, I raked up a lot of flyer miles on my trip to Norway so that won’t be too expensive, and you’ll need a little cash to start out with once you are there. Plus you know furniture and stuff, you can’t take it all with you because that Would cost a bloody fortune.”

“Anders I..”

“Don’t even think about saying you can’t accept it. This is not for you or me, though Bragi would do evil shit to me if I didn’t do right by his wife, this is for Axl. And any and all help comes on the condition that you do NOT tell either Axl or Zeb where you are going or who is helping you get there, nor are you to contact them once you are there. Because we both know that Axl will not be able to let you go and move on if this is not a clean breake.”

Anders got up and extended a hand to help Gaia do the same. As they walk towards the front door he reached into his wallet and pulled out a business card.

“Mail me those papers once you get home. How long will it take you to pack up everything?”

“I can be packed in an hour or two, but I need to phone my work and ..”

“Just send me the number for your work and anywhere else you need to make excuses for a sudden departure and I’ll take care of that. If I book the flight for tomorrow will it give you enough time to say your farewells to you housemates?”

Gaia gave a nod and felt her tears well up.

Anders leaned towards her and gently caressed her arms.

“You better change your e-mail and such so they can’t find you, and you know Axl is enough in love and obsession with you that he would try. I won’t ask for your new contact info once you got them, I’ll already know where you’ll be working which is more than enough of a temptation for Bragi, but should you need me, for anything other than Idunn and Bragi stuff you can always call J:pr and I’ll see what I can do.”

He ended his speech by reaching up to cup her face gently in his hands and delivered the softest most tender kiss of both their lives to her forehead.

 

“Now please go, before I fuck this semi ok moment up by being me again.”

Gaia didn’t listen and gave him a quick but heartfelt hug.

“You know you really aren’t so bad when you try. If I hadn’t been in love with Axl I could have learned to love you.”

And then she was gone, leaving Anders to stare out the open door at the empty hall.

 

“You’d be the first.” He mumbled as he closed the door.


	5. Riding Along In My Automobile

 

“Olaf you really need to get something done to that car of yours.” Ingrid says as she passes the joint to Olaf, and lean back over the couch to call out to Anders as he’s opening a bottle of wine in the kitchen area.

“Could you bring some snacks?”

Anders just rolls his eyes, and fills up his own glass with the white wine.

“Oh, and some popcorn! Can’t have a movie marathon without popcorn.”

“What did your last slave die of? And why aren’t you guys having this at Ty’s place?” Anders grumbles, but still proceeds to rummages around his cupboard’s to see if he even have popcorn. 

“Can you make me a sandwich while you are back there?” Olaf asks as he passes the joint back to Ingrid. “Ty’s out of food, and your tv is better.” He answers Anders, then looks at Ingrid. “And there is nothing wrong with my car.” 

Anders sighs and comes over with the wine, a bowl of assorted nuts, and oddly enough the sandwich Olaf only just asked about.

“I’m out of popcorn, these are the only snacks I have, don’t get crumbs all over my couch, no I haven’t turned oracle on you I just know you by now and know that my kitchen won’t survive you making this yourself.  
And what’s wrong with his car?” 

“Oh, can we get some? Or maybe order pizza? Or maybe both? And there is something wrong dear, no car is supposed to make those kind of noises even I know that.”

“There is nothing wrong with my car that won’t fix it self. That’s just the way of my chariot. Pizza would be great, but we DO need popcorn for the movie. The others will expect it.”

Anders hand freezes halfway to his glass.

“Others? Are you expecting company?”

Ingrid nods enthusiastically.

“Well yes, we couldn’t very well have a movie marathon without the others, it’s only Ty and Stacy though, the other couldn’t come. And you really will need to get moor snacks dearie.”

“Of course I do.” Anders mumbles as the buzzer rings as if on cue. “I’ll just get that shall I?” he says even though the chances of getting an answer are slim at best. 

 

Ty and Stacy arrive together, Ty with an arm full of beer and Stacy with a bag of Blue Ray’s.

“Where’s the snacks?” Is the first thing out of Stacy’s mouth as she enters the flat. 

“Hello to you to.” Anders says and gives Ty a nod. “There’s room in the fridge for those.”

“Thanks, so what are we watching?” Ty asks as he places most of the beer in the fridge, before unscrewing the cap on one to take a swing.

“I have no idea. Maybe: guess who’s coming for dinner?” Anders suggests.

Ty nearly snorts beer out his nose.

“I don’t think we have that one.” Ingrid says as she rummages through the movies. “And there are no snacks Stacy, Anders is fresh out he says.”

“What? Way to be a bad host Anders.”

“Host? I feel more like a hostage.”

“Drama queen. You still could have bought snacks since we’re here for the night.”

“Until fifteen minutes ago I had no idea there would be a movie marathon, much less that said event was taking place here so excuse me if I’m a little unprepared.” 

The other give him supremely unimpressed looks. 

“Fine, I’ll go get your bloody snacks. You can order your pizza in the meantime and I’m NOT paying for that nor am I getting them, I’m not your delivery boy.” Then he holds his hand out towards Olaf palm up. 

“What? I don’t have any money.”

Anders rolls his eyes, again.

“While I have little doubt that that is indeed the truth, I’m not asking for money but for your key’s. My car is at the shop, Ingrid came with you, and those two are undoubtedly on their bikes so… keys.”

 

Twenty minutes, and a quick but thorough search of drugs in the car, later Anders pulls up outside his mechanics’ shop.

“Geez Mr Johnson, what happened to your car that you are driving this piece of crap?”

“Please George, like I would ever be that desperate that I’d by this. No it’s a friends, and as you can hear it need … well to be trashed but he loves the thing, so if you could show it some tlc? And I need it back early tomorrow morning if that’s possible. Besides you love working on these old car’s why it’s practically a privilege.” Anders says, letting Bragi honey his words.

George smiles.

“Sure thing, I’ve just gotten two new apprentices they could use the chance to work on an old girl like this. I’ll drop her by your place and leave the key’s in your mail box as usual?”

Anders smiles and pats the man on the shoulder.

“Thanks George you.”

 

The next morning Olaf drops off Ingrid at her place.

“See honey. My chariot is just fine. She was having a couple of off days.”

“I’ve never seen anything like it.”

“Babe, trust in the universe and it shall provide. Now I can hear the ocean calling me, see ya’!”


	6. That Old Black Magic's Got Me In Its Spell

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which much is discussed, some things are revealed and someone finally sees.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one, hoi! After suffering a minor writer’s block where I simply didn't know how to make Anders's Family 'see' this monster came out in the middle of the night on Little to no sleep and in one session.  
> I'm actually quite pleased with it, but it's un betaed and as I said done on Little sleep, so please point me to any major mistakes.  
> And review so i know what to do better.  
> Cheers!

+1. That Old Black Magic's Got Me In Its Spell

 

When it happens it first seem so stupid and every day that after all the god business it’s almost more unbelievable than anything else they have ever heard. 

A drunk driver had lost control of his big 4x4, flipped it and caused a major pileup with five other cars. Two of which just happen to hold most of the Johnson clan and all their Goddess friends and allies. A freak accident is what end up bringing them down.

Anders listens to the doctors with an intensity and attentiveness that he seldom shows outside of brainstorming sessions for his firm. Words like: Brain damage, paralysis, coma, third degree burns and loss of eyesight are flung against the blank façade he presents. 

Beside him Ty is crumbling like a newspaper thrown onto a fire. Blackening and burning before little pieces brake of and float away on the heated air.

Everyone, every single one of them was in a deep, deep coma.

Anders doesn’t stay in the hospital more than five minutes after the doctor’s finish speaking with them, and Ty can’t help but hate him a little for it.

 

Even when Anders shows up twenty minutes later with The Stick, Ty still feels anger towards him.

 

“You can’t use that. Only goddess’ remember?”

“I know. I thought maybe if we placed it by Michelle she might get better or at least wake up.”

“Well it’s worth a try anyway.”

 

It doesn’t work. Nothing they try does, and the doctors are losing hope concerning Olaf’s condition. 

“Just too much tissue damage. The body can't regenerate and replenish itself from such extensive burns you see.” The doctor says and leaves the two silent young men watching the machines that are struggling with keeping Olaf alive.

 

“What are we going to do Anders? We can’t pull the pluck on grandpa. I know he would be in pain if he where awake, but I can’t face being the one to… to end his life.”

Anders doesn’t answer.

“What if non off them wake up Anders? What if they die?” 

Anders sighs and move to give Ty’s shoulder a squeeze. 

“I have to go Ty, I have to see if I can’t figure something out.”

“Anders what can you do? Your powers don’t work and you can’t tell me you want to asked Colin. He would never help you.”

Anders can’t look Ty in the eyes for a moment and shifts uneasily.

“Anders? What is it?”

“I, I’ve already been to see Colin Ty.”

“What?! When?”

“Last night. When you… when you said you wanted to be alone for a while, I went to Colin’s house to ask, no let’s be honest, I went to fucking beg for help.” Anders falls silent again.

“He couldn’t help?”

“He couldn’t help. But neither did he want to.”

“Prick.”

Anders grinds his teeth and Ty have never seen his brother look this angry before.

“He’s more than a prick Ty. He’s the one that caused the fucking ‘accident’ in the first place.”

“…”

“He told me Ty. He stood there and laughed at me as I begged for his help, and he fucking told me that he had done it. He said how easy it had been to set up, how laughingly stupid they had been to fall for his Frigg trap. That he had made sure to use the darkest most ancient magic to throw the curse, just for kicks he said, he could have done it with just his fire magic, but he wanted to try out some new tricks he said, so that even if anyone should survive the actual crash they would never ever wake up again.”

Anders looks up at Ty then.

“He said that the only regrets he had was that it hadn’t been you that had come to beg, or that you hadn’t been in one of the cars too, because as a mortal you would have died.”  
Ty felt all colour drain from his face.

“It’s my fault. He did it because he never got over Eva.”

Anders took hold of Ty’s shoulders.

“No Ty, it’s NOT your fault. Aside from the fact that everything you did together were really more Hód and Hel not Ty and Eva, and if anyone knows that there IS a difference it’s me, you weren’t the one that killed her, nor did you ask anyone to kill her.”

“But…”

“No Ty. N-o-t y-o-u-r fault. Not anymore than it’s Axl’s fault for laughing at Colin that one time, or Mike’s for just generally pissing him off, or Michelle’s for leaving him for Mike or even mine for not bowing down to him like the good little puppet he wanted me to be. Colin was power mad, a complete dickhead and a psycho, and that was properly before he ever became Loki. My point being, that this was no one’s fault but Loki’s. Do you understand?”

Ty just looked at Anders.

“Do you understand Ty? I’m not letting you go before you answer me that you’ve gotten it into your frozen skull that it is not your fault. And I don’t care if you tell me you are no longer Hód, you are still an ice-brain.”

Ty couldn’t help the twitch of the lip the old nickname provoked.

“Ok. Not my fault.”

“Atta’ boy.”

“So what do we do now? Can we force him to break the curse?”

“Er… No.” Anders shifted again, and the look on his face was somewhere between embarrassed and angry. 

“Anders, what aren’t you telling me?”

“I…”

“What?”

The look on Anders’ face as Ty looked at him right there, was enough to send shivers down Ty’s spine. The words that came out of Anders mouth and the absolute sincerity in them chilled him to the bone.

“I killed him Ty. I swear to you, one second I was several feet away from him and the next thing I remember is me standing over his body watching his god spirit leave the corpse.”

“Jesus Anders.” Ty is shaking. His little big brother who have been in lots of fights but never fought, only defended himself, and now … now he had killed.  
Anders sighed, walked over to one of the chairs beside Olaf’s bed, sat down and looked at the floor.

“Look, if you don’t want me around I can understand Ty, and I’ll stay out of your way. But if you want me to say that I’m sorry or that I regret what I did, then I can’t bloody help you. Because I’m glad that Loki isn’t able to hurt you anymore, and I’d do it again in a heartbeat if I’d thought it would help any of you.”

 

They sit in silence for a long time after that.

Anders not wanting to speed up the judgement he is sure is coming and Ty not knowing what to say or how to say it.

Finally Ty gives in and breaks the silence. 

“Anders, I’m not mad at you for killing Loki and certainly not for defending our family. I just have two questions.”

Anders makes eye contact to indicate Ty should go on.

“Are you sure he couldn’t lift the curse?”

“He bragged that it was impossible to lift once it had been cast, even by the caster.”

“Okay good, well not good but good that you didn’t off him while we could have needed him. Second question then: What did you do about the body? With Odin down, Bragi is effectively out of the picture, and it could get pretty nasty trying to get out of a murder charge.”

Anders shifted on his chair.

“I called in a favour. And before you ask, don’t.”

The seriousness in Anders tone let’s Ty know that his brother means it. 

“Fair enough.”

“Look, Ty as I said I need to do something so…”Anders leaves the end open for Ty to decide if he need’s Anders to be here or if he can go where he’ll fell more productive. 

“We’ll need to figure something out about that curse, and if I remember correctly from my school projects you always did excel at research. So you go see if you can dig up anything on this curse. I’ll stay and… well you know. And I’ll call you if there are any changes.”

 

Ty spends the next four days listening to doctors wonder at the deep state of coma his friends and family are in with the only communication from Anders being a daily text asking if there is any change.

On the fifth day Anders appears and asks the doctors if he can please examine his brothers back. Despite the oddity of the request, and Anders non existing Bragi powers, the doctor asks a couple of nurses to help Anders out. 

After a thorough examination of both Mike and Axl’s backs, with Anders taking several photos with his phone, he thanks the nurses and they leave.

 

At Ty’s look of astonishment at what Anders just got them to do, Anders just shrugs.

“Well I ‘Can’ be charming when I want to you know. It’s not all Bragi. How did you think I talked my way out of trouble before my twenty-first’?”

Ty have to admit that he had forgotten that, their screwed up family aside, Anders have always been able to charm the birds out of the threes, becoming Bragi only helped stack the cards even more in his favour.

“So what was that for, did you learn something?”

“Yes and no. I didn’t find what I was hoping for, but I did find something interesting. Check this out, what does that look like to you?” Anders holds out his phone so Ty can see the pictures.

“I don’t know…” He turns the photo a few times, he can’t quite see what it is Anders sees.

“There,” Anders says and zooms in on a portion of Axl’s lower back, “can you see it now?”

Ty squints and… 

“Those thin markings?”

“Yes those. I think they might be runes.”

Ty takes another look. Now that Anders mentions it.

“Can you read them?”

“Not very well, I mean I sort of dabbled a little after that whole contract fiasco but, yes well let’s just say that I never really had the time to really sit down with it. But I’m fairly sure that that’s the rune for power and that that one there is for something like flowers or something.”

Ty gives him a dubious look. 

“Flowers?”

“Well yes, I did say I only dabbled, so not a hundred on the meaning yet. But what I can tell you for certain is that That,” he said and pointed to a set of markings that were clearer than the rest, “that is Not a Norse rune.”

“It’s not? It looks almost the same to me.”

“Almost, not quite. Look Ty I’m going to find someone who can actually read all of these. So I might not be back here for a while, please keep me updated on them?”

“Of course.”

 

Two days later Ty get a text from Anders saying that he might have a clue and that he’s leaving the country to peruse it. 

 

On the twelfth day after his departure Anders returns to the hospital, looking like he has just woken from a coma himself.

“Jesus Anders!” Ty exclaimed as he got up and hugged his brother.

“If this works I just might change my name to that yes.” Anders mumbled into Ty’s shoulder as he let his little brother take some of his weight for just a moment.

Reluctantly letting go of the smaller man, Ty took a step back.

“You found a way to lift the curse, to bring them out of the coma?”

“If this works like it should, it will do more than that Ty.”

“You found a way to heal them?” Ty can’t help the smile that finds its way onto his face for the first time since this whole thing happened. 

“Yes.”

Ty is eager to hear everything that Anders has found out but his brother is very close to being asleep on his feet so the younger man relents and takes the older home. Anders let’s Ty know that he’ll need to be totally rested, or as close to it as he can get with his family in this state, so Ty is not to wake him for anything short of the worlds end or one of the hospitalized taking a turn for the worse.

 

When Anders walks into Axl and Mike’s room the next day it’s early afternoon. 

“Ty go get The Stick.”

“How can The Stick be the solution, we already tried that?”

“Just get the damn stick Ty.” And weirdly enough it brings comfort to Ty that Anders is being a bit of an arse.

 

When he comes back with The Stick there is a tall, pale dark haired man waiting for him out front.

“Ty?” He asks and throws down the cigarette he’s been smoking.

“Yes?” After the Godhunter incident’s last year Ty is naturally cautious of strangers knowing his name. 

“I’m Mitchell, Anders friend. He send me to help you find where they moved them all.”

At ty’s sceptical look he quickly added: “And no I’m not a god hunter, though I suppose a god hunter wouldn’t admit he was one… but I know you’re mortal now so yeah, I’ll just shut up and show you the way.” Mitchell finishes with a sheepish smile that Ty can’t help but return.

“Sorry, Anders never mentioned you were coming.”

“The little prick, he either forgot or thought it would be funny to embarrass the both of us.”

“Knowing my brother it could be either or both. So lead the way.”

 

Five minutes later they turned onto a corridor that would have looked totally deserted if not for a tall muscular mountain of a man that was standing guard by the door furthest down the corridor.  
For a second Ty feared the man would not let them pass but after a truly intimidating look, he opened the door for them, allowing them to enter a rather large room where Ty could see his family lying on gurneys placed in a circle surrounding a single bed placed in the middle where Anders was fiddling with something.

“Don’t mind Brian, or should I say Neit, he’s a bit of a lad when the mood takes him but really what can you expect from the god of battle? He’s really a fine fellow once you get past the scowling.” A young beautiful woman said as she all but glided towards them. “I’m Eveleen or Airmid goddess of the celtic order of Tuatha de Danaan, goddess of medical plants and keeper of spring. Regenerates or bring the dead to life again.”

Ty lightened up.

“So you can heal my family?”

Airmid shook her head.

“No, it’s not that easy I’m afraid. Even if I’d had my full powers the fact that they are god’s and goddess’s of a different pantheon would make that nearly impossible and that’s without accounting for the curse.”

“So if you can’t heal them…” Ty asked.

“She’s here to boost my powers and keep my god spirit tethered to my body when I enter the between.”

Anders said as he finished what it was he was doing by the bed and came over holding his hands out for the branch of Yggdrasil. Ty couldn’t help but notice that Anders seemed to almost glow with vitality compared to what he’d looked like last night, too much to be explained by a good night’s sleep alone.

Before he could ask Mitchell all but growled and pushed past him so he was standing way inside Anders’s personal space.

“You smell of him. Did you complete the transference of power without me?” The brunette’s pupils where blown and he looked like a live wire as his whole body trembled with what Ty realized as Mitchell caressed  
Anders sides and neck, was pure lust. An emotion that quickly changed to anger as Mitchell spotted the dark bruises forming on Anders neck. “He hurt you.”

“No Mitchell I…”

“I’ll kill him!” Ty jumped back not so much at Mitchell’s outburst but at the fact that his eyes har turned pitch black and he now sported a rather impressive set of fangs. 

“Jesus!”

Mitchell hissed, but Anders grabbed him before he could get anywhere.

“Mitchell. Mitchell! He didn’t mean to, he just got a little overenthusiastic that’s all. You know it had to be done, I told you beforehand, and it was better that you weren’t here for it.”

“But I wanted to be there, to make sure something like this didn’t happen.”

“John, he didn’t do it on purpose. And could you really have stood back and watch as I sucked him off?”

The growl Mitchell let out at that image was answer enough.

“See? Now go get ready I just have to explain the last details to Ty and carve the last of the runes then we can begin. That is if the two of you are still sure you want to do this?”

Airmid gave a nod and a gentle smile and Mitchell a quiet: “Yes.”

“Good the go get ready both of you. The tea is almost ready so you can pour that when you are done preparing yourself.” 

Ty watched in a slight state of shock as Mitchell and Airmid walked over towards a curtained of area in the far corner of the big room. 

“Is he?”

“A vampire? Dangerous? My lover? Yes, yes very, not yet but he might soon be if we both survive this.”

“Lover?! Survive?!”

Anders sighed.

 

“I’m not going to lie to you Ty, the ritual is very complicated and a lot of things may go wrong.”

“I want to know all of it.”

“You really don’t Ty. All you need to know is that once it starts you can’t under any, do you hear me ANY circumstances interfere with anything within the circle, and that includes Mike, Axl, Olaf and the others. Don’t even touch the gurneys. And most especially do not touch me or come to my aid in any way, no matter how much I may scream and cry out for you to do just that, you must not help me.”

Ty paled as Anders spoke.

“Screaming? Anders what…?”

“The ritual is about life and death and the constant struggle between the two Ty. It’s ancient magic, and the most powerful of the ancient magics is sexual.”

Ty gave a little twitch.

“Sexual?”

“You hear Mitchell before? When he mentioned ‘transference of power’ he meant Neit lending me some of his power and life-force. Do you want to know how it was transferred?”

Ty remembered Mitchell’s words and looked at the marks on Anders’ throat.

“Sexually?” He all but whispered. 

“Yes Ty, I had to suck him off to get his life force. And when the ritual really begins I’m going to be kneeling naked on that bed over there. Hands tied firmly to the branch of Yggdrasil hanging from those two sturdy hooks and chains, while Airmid rides my cock while she does her thing in celtic and represents life, and Mitchell…” Anders closed his eyes briefly and gave a light shudder. “Mitchell is going to be behind me, fucking me for all that he’s worth, representing death and feeding on me to help me enter the netherworld. All the while I have to say spell songs in the ancient language and battle the curse as it attacks my body and mind and if I fail… If I fail, best case scenario: Nothing happens. Much more likely is the case where my mind is torn to pieces and worst case is everyone dies and Odin’s death unleashes a natural catastrophe. Now tell me Ty, did you really want to know that? And do you still want to be part of it?”

The images in Ty’s head were making his head swim. 

“But, but you’re straight?!”

Anders burst out laughing at that.

“I know Ty. And until today I’ve never willingly gone down on anyone, but we need the male partner for the ritual.” Anders looked behind himself to where Mitchell and Airmid was lighting candles and slowly getting undressed. “Mitchell’s in love with me Ty, he’s said so, and he’s willing to take anything he can get he says. And while I really like women, really, really like women… given half a chance I think I could be well and truly caught by Mitchell too.” 

This last was said in the quiet and deeply serious tone Ty remembered from when they were very young and would share their most precious secrets hiding under Mike’s bed until the world was safe again. If made Anders seem like the shy child he had been when he’d still had innocence left to be stolen. And here Anders stood, ready to risk his life and sanity on a mix of ancient magic and legend without a thought for himself, yet afraid that his brother would judge him for having feelings for another man.

“Oh Andy.” Ty said and threw his arms around his brother in a hug trying to express how much he truly loved his brother.

Anders startled at the hug, but soon melted into it like a man starved for touch.

If both their eyes were damp when they let go of each other, no one said anything about it.

 

“Right. Well, as I said you have to stay out of the circle and not intervene until the last candle goes out. You can always turn your back to the circle if you don’t want to watch, but we do need someone in the room to help us once it’s done because we probably won’t have much strength by then.”

Ty squeezed Anders shoulder one last time before handing over the branch of Yggdrasil, discreetly turned away as Anders got undressed and joined the other in the circle, and couldn’t help but watch in fascination as Anders carved runes into the branch before Airmid and Mitchell each took one of his hands kissed it and placed it on the branch before securing Anders’s grip on the branch by tying him to it.

At that point Ty turned his back, and did his best to filter out the noises from the bed.

 

At first it was relatively easy to do. It was mostly quiet mumbles in ancient languages and the rustle of the sheets.

Then came the moans, the noise of kissing, flesh gliding against flesh, soft sighs and little grunts of pleasure.

At a sudden whimper of pain from Anders Ty instinctively turned towards the bed and froze.

Airmid was a truly beautiful woman, her body slender jet curvy and she moved with an unearthly graze as she ground out her pleasure riding his brother. Anders slight body seemed stretched by the hoisted position of his arms, jet he seemed more solid and strong all toned golden flesh, earth to Airmid’s air. Behind him Mitchell was a sculptured dream of pale flesh, dark hair, thin steely strength and fiery passion. The love he felt for Anders was easily seen as he slowly slid his long member into Anders virgin hole.

The three of them where magnificent to watch. They moved like dancers, highly attuned to each other, instinctively knowing where to caress, when to kiss, when to bite, when to move and when to be still, all the while the chanting went on, like an ancient love song to the gods it flowed around them, and they seemed to emit a soft glow that grew in intensity until it seemed to peak as Anders gave a startled gasp as Mitchell gave a quick deep thrust and sank his teeth into Anders neck.

Ty tore his eyes away as he saw a few drops of blood escape Mitchell’s mouth and run down Anders’ neck.

He was painfully hard but resolved not to do anything about it, no matter how erotic the ritual might seem now, from what Anders had said it was about to turn deadly serious, and he’d be damned if he was jerking of while his brother was fighting for all their lives.

 

As the hours whore on Ty’s resolve to not interfere was sorely tested.

While it had been erotic at first, and still where on some level, by now it was clear that battling the curse was tortuous work. Anders had cried out, he’d trashed and fought as much as he could in his position, and he’d screamed himself hoarse, but never with words not in the rune songs. Even now, mattered in blood, sweat, tears and other body fluids and when his words where barely more than a rasping whisper he keep it up. It made Ty’ tear up just to watch him.

And watch him he did. This could be Anders final moments, and if they were Ty would have someone stand witness to his brothers strength of will, spirit and body. Anders had never been as godly as he was now in Ty’s eyes.

Suddenly Anders jerked in his bonds, the aura around them flared, the runes carved into Yggdrasil shone with a cold fire and all three on the bed screamed in agony, before they collapsed onto the bed, and the unearthly light that had surrounded them faded away. 

The last candle sputtered angrily and died.

 

 

Ty felt as if his heart had stopped beating, and only started again as Mitchell gave a weak groan and moved to stretch a leg. 

“Oh God, I feel worse than when I first died.” The vampire groaned hoarsely. “Anders, Airmid? Anders love are you alright?”

On the other end of the bed Airmid stirred. 

“Och, but that was amazing. Agonizing, tiring, mentally exhausting and downright dirty, but utterly completely amazing. Plus you know, with all that sex, I’m pretty sure I’m carrying Bragi’s lovechild.” The woman mused as she stretched. 

“Anders?” Ty asked as he tentatively moved towards the bed. His brother had yet to move as much as an eyelash.

Mitchell slowly got up on his elbows.

“Anders?” no response. Swallowing and frowning Mitchell’ tried: “Bragi?”

 

The reaction was instantaneous. Anders body jerked back to life, and a golden aura shone from him with such brightness that Mitchell cried out in agony and the others hissed and shielded their eyes.

Seconds later it was gone, and Anders once again slumped in his bounds.

Only this time his chest was visibly moving as he panted for breath. 

“Let’s never, *cough*, never ever do that again.” He rasped out, and had they not been straining to hear it they would have missed it. 

Mitchell managed to sit up and climb around so was in front of Anders, where he brought a hand up and lifted Anders’s head by his chin.

Anders looked at Mitchell as he added, “Except for the sex. The sex can most definitely be repeated.”

Mitchell smiled and nervously asked: “All of it?”

Anders smiled.

“All of it.” And leaned forward to meet Mitchell in a kiss so tender, sweet and private that Ty blushed more than he had when Mitchell had first slid into Anders.

As the two parted lips Ty had a hard time deciding which one of them smiled the brightest, but he didn’t have time to think about it because Olaf just gave a groan from his bed and the ventilator started howling.

“He’s waking up!” Airmid exclaimed. “Ty, get me my robe and help me up, we need to get that tube out.”

“Right, you do that and Mitchell you can get your pretty little arse in gear and untie me and help me get dressed so my entire family doesn’t wake up to see me naked and tied up. That one time when I was sixteen really were more than enough for me.”


End file.
